Woody, Buzz, and the Toy Story gang in an intense scene from Toy Story 3, showing the characters facing a pivotal moment. (Photo Credit – Hotstar)
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Okay, Toy Story fans—brace yourselves. Toy Story 3 almost took a wild turn, and not the kind that would’ve made you sob uncontrollably at the end. Nope.
Michael Arndt, the screenwriter, spilled the beans on how the first draft was a wacky comedy chase scene. Forget the tear-jerking incinerator scene and the final goodbye to Andy—this ending had the toys running for their lives on RC cars, planes, and motorcycles. Not precisely a tear-fest, huh?
Arndt spilled the tea in an interview with Script Apart, revealing that in the original script, the toys had to race back to Andy’s house before he left for college. So far, so good, right? But then, things got really out of hand. The gang stumbles into Al’s Toy Barn (shoutout to Toy Story 2), grabs a bunch of toy vehicles, and tries to make the mad dash back to Andy’s room.
Chaos ensues—everyone’s messing with the wrong remotes, cars are running out of juice, and the whole thing becomes one big mess. Think Toy Story meets a slapstick sitcom. It’s funny, sure, but does it give you the feels? Nope.
Instead of a heartfelt goodbye, the toys raced the clock. It was funny, sure, but it lacked the gut-wrenching depth that made us cry in 2010.
And don’t get me started on the chases. The draft had the toys doing precisely what they did in the first two movies: chasing after something. In Toy Story, it was the moving truck. In Toy Story 2, it was an airplane. In this version, they’re on toy vehicles, fighting for their lives like a ridiculous car chase. Sure, it would’ve been a fun callback, but it would’ve been… repetitive. We needed a fresh, emotional punch, not a rerun of the same old “we gotta catch up to Andy” scenario.
Fast-forward to the final version, where Pixar delivered the real emotional rollercoaster. The toys aren’t just running around—nope. They’re staring down their mortality in an incinerator, coming to terms with Andy’s moving on and learning to accept their purpose in Bonnie’s hands. It was raw, honest, and heartbreakingly perfect.
So yeah, that alternate ending with RC vehicles and batteries running out? It might’ve given us some laughs, but it wouldn’t have felt like the Toy Story we know and love.
